(Yicai) May 22 -- Chinese startup AgiBot released its new humanoid robot, the Lingxi X2, and is starting to recruit partners to take androids out of the workshop and into the workplace.

The Lingxi X2 went on sale today and AgiBot has begun recruiting commercial partners, Wei Qiang, president of the Shanghai-based firm’s Lingxi business department, said in an interview with Yicai yesterday. These partners will distribute the robot directly to end consumers, he added.

The Lingxi X2 is available in three version -- Interactive, Pro Exploration, and Ultra Flagship -- each with progressively enhanced capabilities and costing from just over CNY100,000 to CNY400,000 (USD13,885 to USD55,535). The Ultra Flagship model can navigate complex real-world environments such as parks and can be equipped with dexterous hands, remote control, and motion capture devices.

Its potential uses include education, entertainment, and exhibition hall services, Wei noted. The android's vitality stems from its hardware setup and software interaction, he said, frequently using the term "sense of life" when describing the product.

Standing around 1.3 meters tall and resembling a nine-year-old child in appearance, the Lingxi X2 features 25 to 31 degrees of freedom throughout its body, with enhanced human-computer interaction capabilities that strengthen the users' perception of its "life force.”

The maturity of both hardware and software of humanoid robots, as well as their uses, are still in exploratory phase, Wei said, noting that “the most critical task at this stage is to deliver value to users.”

Cultural and entertainment performances and exhibition hall guidance, which highlight the robot's interaction capabilities and "sense of life," are the commercial scenarios where AgiBot mostly hopes to deploy the Lingxi X2, according to Wei.

The Lingxi X2 could serve as an exhibition guide, host cultural and entertainment performances, perform dances, stand-up comedy, and other stage acts, he said.

The use of humanoid robots in cultural, entertainment, and exhibition settings are still in their infancy, but Lingxi X2's interaction, agility, and intelligence will be its core competitive advantages in these fields, Wei noted.

In addition to providing the humanoid robot hardware, AgiBot offers open interfaces for the Lingxi X2, supporting secondary development from joint control to model algorithms.

"Accumulating data in more human-interaction scenarios and using it to fuel technological iteration is the healthy development path for humanoid robots," Wei said. 

The industry is far from entering a price war, Wei noted, adding that "as long as products can truly meet customer needs, large-scale popularization is just a matter of time." 

The Lingxi X2's rapid development shows AgiBot's strong engineering capabilities. The android was only approved for development earlier this year, with the firm unveiling a prototype in March and making some performance upgrades this month before putting mass production on the agenda. 

Shipments of the Lingxi X2 may exceed 5,000 units by the end of next year, Wei said.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Martin Kadiev